Electricians: go green or go obsolete

“In the next ten to twenty years, ‘electrical contractor’ will no longer be a suitable job title for electricians. They will transition into “energy contractors” to support the fast-growing green construction market”, says Houston Neal in a must-read article for Software Advice.

According to Hudson, as interest in renewable energy grows, both by homeowners and businesses alike, electrical contracting will have to adapt and green up in order to stay in business.

The American Solar Energy Society predicts a nearly 1,000% growth in renewable energy jobs for electricians. Another study projects green construction to generate $554 billion dollars in GDP, provide $396 billion in labor earnings and support or create over 7.9 million jobs from last year to 2013.

“The growing green construction market will create new demand for electricians”, says Houston. “And to keep up with demand, electricians will need to diversify their skill-set. We obviously expect to see electricians working on solar photovoltaic and wind turbine installations, but that’s just the beginning. They’ll work on building retrofits, mass transit and light rail projects, ‘smart’ electrical grid transmission systems and more.”

Houston mentions lighting system upgrades, parking lot electrical outlets, wind turbine manufacturing and electric vehicle electricians as some of the examples of specialized work green electricians will find.